Seoul Object Story

The spirit barrier had collapsed.

That trustworthy shield guarding the city? Gone. Crumbling away in flames like some cheap paper fortress.

And where was I in all this chaos? Wandering around, of course. Just strolling through the burning streets like it was my personal playground.

The city—once a familiar maze—now felt like it was trying to choke me out. Every breath I took felt like fire, burning my lungs as if they were on the verge of exploding. Yeah, real fun.

The red glow from the barrier—it looked like a sunset, if sunsets were harbingers of doom—cast eerie shadows over the ruins. The collapsed outer walls looked like the city’s skeleton, while smoke and fire shot into the sky without a care. The streets, which used to be as familiar to me as the back of my hand, now felt alien, twisted by destruction.

“Hurry up. We’ve got to get out, and fast.”

That was my friend, always the cautious one, leading the way.

“Wait. Stop.”

Suddenly, he pressed his back against a half-shattered wall, voice low. I glanced over in the direction he was staring at, and there they were—those long-limbed freaks. Monsters. Not human, of course. More like Objects, with limbs that stretched out like water striders.

Unlike the flaming pigs—yeah, you heard me right, giant flaming pigs—they skulked around every corner, hunting down survivors. If it weren’t for those creeps, we’d probably have been out of this burning city ages ago.

One of them, hunched and grotesque, was prowling on the other side of us, inspecting the area like it had all the time in the world. From the looks of it, this thing was gonna be here for a while.

I glanced at my friend. “So… what now?”

He didn’t even flinch. “We wait. Once it moves, we cut through that alley and we’re good. We’ll hit the forest.”

“Yeah, sure.” I muttered under my breath, taking in a deep breath to steady myself. Even though the air reeked of smoke and burning debris, I stifled a cough and focused on catching my breath.

After a few minutes, the monster finally wandered off, disappearing down an alley.

“Thirty seconds,” my friend said calmly. “Wait thirty more seconds, then we bolt.”

“Got it.”

I could finally breathe again, lungs starting to stabilize.

Twenty-five seconds. Twenty-six…

Then, I heard it—a low, raspy snicker.

What’s so funny? I turned to my friend, half-expecting some clever remark, but he was looking up. And when I followed his gaze, well, wouldn’t you know it—a monster with an absurdly long neck was hanging over the wall, smiling down at us.

“Run!”

At his word, I bolted. Asphalt cracked behind me as the monster’s hand sliced through the ground like it was slicing cake.

Great. Just great.

We were almost there, dammit!

I cursed inwardly as we ran toward the forest, but then, of course, we had to stop. Why? Because there it was—a massive, heat-radiating pig, standing right in our path. Its body gave off so much heat it felt like my skin was about to catch fire just from being near it.

A pig in front. A monster closing in from behind. Perfect.

“This is it,” my friend said, surprisingly calm. “We’re done for.”

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Really? Is this how it ends? For a second, I thought, Screw it. Letting go of everything suddenly made the stinking hell we were in feel… cooler.

Wait, cooler? And humid?

That didn’t make sense. Not in this burning wasteland.

Then, out of nowhere, glowing characters appeared in the sky. Water droplets surrounded us like some kind of divine shield.

< please="" protect="" everyone!="">

At the same time, I saw an Object flying overhead, glowing a clear, refreshing blue. It was a strange sight, but what followed was even stranger. Golden Objects started popping up everywhere—from behind broken stone walls, overturned cars, even cracks in the asphalt. They poked their heads out like curious meerkats, only a little too… cute.

“It’s the Golden Reapers! We’re saved!” My friend collapsed to the ground, his face slack with relief.

“The Golden what?” I wasn’t exactly sold on the idea of trusting cute little gremlins.

“You’re always so disinterested in Objects,” he scoffed. “It’s the Golden Reapers. I can’t believe you haven’t heard of them. There’s even a fan site—< little="" golden="" reapers="">.”

Fan site? Really? I mean, sure, it sounded important, but his excitement made him seem less like a fan and more like… a fanatic. Great. Turns out my roommate’s one of those guys.

I glanced around. The monsters—the giant pig, the long-necked creeps—were gone. Then I felt a little tug at the hem of my pants. One of those cute little Golden Reapers was pointing towards the end of the road, its tiny face filled with concern.

The thing looked harmless enough, so I picked it up, and it just nestled into my hand, smiling like a baby. Its scent reminded me of warm sunlight.

“Well, you’re kinda cute.”

“Right?” My friend grinned as he followed the path the Reapers had shown us.

I followed, holding the smiling Golden Reaper in my hand, gently stroking it as we walked. The monsters had disappeared, and more of the fairy-like creatures were dancing around the ruins, glowing with golden light.

Maybe it was just a gut feeling, but for the first time in what felt like forever, I thought… maybe things were finally looking up.

***A voice echoed through the underground facility—the one that had clearly cost a small fortune to build.

“No! Please, just look the other way this one time!”

“No. This is embezzlement. You know what happens when it’s related to Objects—punishments get severe!”

Director Lee Sehee was clinging to my foot, pleading like her life depended on it. Honestly, she’s lucky I don’t charge her for this kind of emotional labor.

“It’s not embezzlement! This underground facility is just… an extension of the research institute, you know?”

I raised an eyebrow, clearly unconvinced, and pointed at the massive golden statue standing in the middle of the room, radiating light like it was about to host its own divine sermon.

“Then what’s up with the giant gold statue? You can’t tell me that was necessary. It screams expensive from every angle.”

“That’s not embezzlement either! I just… recycled the gold that was already here.”

Recycled? From where exactly?

Oh no. Oh no no no…

“Wait… did you use the Cute Puppy’s kennel?”

The golden kennel? From the Cute Puppy’s containment room? That kennel was iconic—there’s no way she…

“So, you stole it?” I asked, my voice a little high-pitched from the sheer disbelief.

But why hadn’t I heard any reports about the kennel disappearing? I mean, sure, we’re a bit relaxed around here (okay, maybe too relaxed sometimes), but there’s no way no one noticed a whole doghouse vanishing, right? It was huge.

Did the security team seriously not report it? What on earth are they getting paid for? At this point, I should be the one signing their dismissal papers.

And—wait, when did this whole basement even get built?

Director Lee Sehee was usually clueless, blissfully ignorant about most things. But of course, when it came to sneaky, under-the-radar construction projects, suddenly she’s a mastermind. Figures.

Just as my faith in the institute was circling the drain, Sehee piped up again.

“I didn’t just take the kennel… I replaced it! With a gold-plated one, of course!”

Ha. Well, thank goodness for that. Gold-plating makes everything better, right? Totally not suspicious at all.

At least now it wasn’t technically embezzlement, right? I mean, they just expanded the facility a little. Nothing to worry about… probably.

As I was mulling over the ridiculousness of this whole situation, something small and shiny popped up from behind the golden statue.

It was a Golden Reaper.

Director Lee Sehee pointed at the tiny creature with an air of desperation, gesturing wildly like her life depended on this explanation.

“This golden statue is one of the Golden Reapers’ favorites! I mean, come on, we can’t just tear it down! Do it for the Golden Reapers, not for me!”

And with that, she shoved the poor little Reaper—who looked equally as bewildered as me—into my hands. It had the same sad, pleading face as Sehee. I swear it was trying to say, Please don’t break our shiny golden statue!

Well, great. Now I had the Reaper guilt-tripping me too.

“Fine, if it’s for the Golden Reapers, we’ve got some justification.” I sighed, waving off the whole thing. For the Reapers’ sake, I let Sehee off the hook this time. My ‘angry boss’ face softened, though it wasn’t easy with all this nonsense going on.

The Golden Reapers, who had been cautiously peeking at me from behind the statue, immediately brightened up and dashed toward me. Great, now I had a swarm of them clinging to me, their little golden faces beaming with pure joy.

Honestly, what could I do? They were cute. And, well… it was for the Golden Reapers, after all. How could I say no to them?

***In the transport vehicle James sent to take me to the airport, I pressed my face against the window, my expression all scrunched up as I watched the city blur by.

A burned city. A completely collapsed spirit barrier.

Soldiers were everywhere, rushing around, trying to move people to safety now that the city had been declared an Object danger zone. It was kind of chaotic, but oddly organized, too.

I had heard the damage was actually pretty small, despite the spirit barrier collapsing and all the Objects causing trouble. It was all thanks to the Golden Reapers and Blue Reapers. Obviously.

People had seen the Mini Reapers in action, and there were tons of videos circulating. Everyone loved them—they were cute, they were helpful, and they didn’t freak people out like most Objects. They really were something special. So adorable!

Then, Yerin shoved her phone right into my face.

“When we get back to Korea, let’s try these outfits!” she squealed, her eyes practically sparkling as she showed me photo after photo of frilly, doll-like clothes.

Yerin had the same obsession as the Mini Reapers—she wanted to dress me up. But… why? What’s the deal with everyone wanting to make me wear stuff?

Still, I sighed and nodded, scrunching my face even more. I mean, what could I do? This was my punishment for making her mad earlier.

When she passed out from my little prank (whoops), she woke up way faster than I expected. Lucky me. But she must’ve been really freaked out, because she was super angry afterward. So yeah… special measures were needed.

Ugh, clothes. I don’t get it. Why do people—and Mini Reapers—love clothes so much?

It’s not like we could find any cute outfits in the Rocky Mountains anyway, so I just threw on a white Angry Ghost for clothing. It was pretty stylish, if you ask me.

Whether it was because she found the whole Angry Ghost outfit hilarious, or because she was just happy I was wearing something for once, Yerin calmed down quickly.

And then, of course, once she realized I felt bad for the whole prank thing, she took advantage of the situation. She started showing me the worst clothes ever. Horrible outfits. Frills. Everywhere. They looked like doll clothes, but way worse.

I mean, just glancing at them, you could tell they were a nightmare to put on—ribbons, knots, all that nonsense. No way I could wear them on my own. Plus, they looked so uncomfortable, like I wouldn’t even be able to move properly.

Surely, she wasn’t actually serious, right?

But the look on Yerin’s face made me nervous. She was definitely serious. Oh no.

***The Garden of Mini Reapers, once a whimsical paradise where fluffy marshmallows drifted like snowflakes and cotton candy clouds cast their soft, sugary shadows, had fallen into an unsettling stillness. The sweet, intoxicating scent of the wavy sea of hot chocolate, once so inviting, now lingered in the air like a haunting memory. Where joyful laughter had once echoed, silence now reigned. The Mini Grim Reapers—those mischievous, playful creatures—had vanished, having left to aid the living. Their absence turned the vibrant garden into a desolate, eerie void.

In the heart of this now empty space, where not a single Mini Grim Reaper could be seen, something began to stir. The air grew thick, oppressive, as a shape started to form in the void.

It was massive—its surface smooth and flawless, without so much as a blemish. A perfect sphere, untouched and unyielding.

< the="" unchanging="" black="" ball="">

It hovered there, suspended in the air, an orb of absolute darkness. Its presence was suffocating, as if it devoured the light around it. Rising like an unnatural sun over the once-bustling garden, the black ball cast a shadow that seemed to stretch endlessly, swallowing what remained of the lighthearted world in its cold, ominous grip.